The US government says it will stop funding programs in South Africa intended to tackle the spread of HIV and Aids, linking the decision to the government’s alleged failure to protect the white-minority Afrikaner community.

South Africa’s health ministry responded by saying that though it had not been informed of this decision, it had “long been working on a self-reliance plan”.

More than eight million South Africans are living with HIV – the highest number of any country in the world.

Until 2025, the US was supporting South Africa’s efforts to deal with the virus with an estimated $400m (£300m) a year through the President’s Emergency Fund for Aids Relief (Pepfar).

But since the inauguration of President Donald Trump, relations between the two countries have increasingly soured.

Shortly after he came into office, Trump issued an executive order alleging that “countless” South African policies dismantled equal opportunities and fueled violence “against racially disfavored landowners”.

This is disputed by the South African government, which says its Black Economic Empowerment policy is needed to correct economic inequality dating from the apartheid era.

The executive order also highlighted South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice and its links to Iran.

The White House said that given these “unjust and immoral practices”, further aid to South Africa would not be provided.

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